Published: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 at 10:41 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, April 30, 2014 at 4:32 p.m.

BRADENTON - Alice Kaddatz stood by the Manatee County courthouse Wednesday morning and spoke of the anguish the past year has brought to her family.

“I don't know how many people could put their lives out there like we have,” she said. “It's been difficult.”

Kaddatz spoke moments after former Manatee High assistant football coach Rod Frazier pleaded no contest to four misdemeanor charges of battery and two counts of interfering with a student's attendance.

The state dropped three misdemeanor battery charges and one charge of interfering with a student's attendance in the case.

As part of the deal Frazier, 36, received three years probation, six months house arrest and he must complete 90 days of manual labor for Manatee County in the span of a year.

In addition, Frazier will voluntarily surrender for permanent revocation any teaching or coaching licenses. That means he will not be able to coach or teach in the state of Florida for the rest of his life.

The victims in the Frazier case were all former female Manatee High students or employees.

One of the battery charges Frazier pleaded no contest to involved Kaddatz's daughter, a former Manatee High student who graduated from the district last spring.

Kaddatz said the difficulty the family has experienced because of the case was made worthwhile by Wednesday's plea deal.

“Yes,” Kaddatz said. “Because of the fact he is not going to do this to another child and that has always been my main purpose behind this. This needed to stop. It's wrong.”

Frazier appeared in court Wednesday wearing a white dress shirt and tie. He accepted his punishment quietly, responding to the judges questions with short “Yes sir, no sir” answers, and did not comment after the brief proceeding.

Ed Mulock, Frazier's attorney, stood a few feet from Kaddatz at the courthouse. He said Frazier was running low on funds for his defense, which was one of the reasons he accepted the deal.

Mulock said he was generally pleased with the deal. A trial date had been set for June 2.

“I've been doing this for 45 years,” Mulock said. “I've been there with great cases and lost and I've been there with terrible cases and won. The bottom line in litigation is it's a crap shoot, so do you take a chance when you get probation? No. It would be stupid.

“And remember they dropped four charges, three of them are batteries. I thought that was very important.

“I'm real happy they will step up and drop charges. That's unusual. The state attorney doesn't drop charges.”

“This was a very emotional experience for these victims,” Doyle said. “We sought justice. He was convicted of these crimes, and he is being punished for these crimes.”

Kaddatz's daughter wrote a letter on January 9, 2012, outlining several allegations concerning Frazier's behavior at Manatee High and the letter was brought to school principal Don Sauer. Along with being an assistant football coach, Frazier was a former parent liaison at the school.

Among the allegations in the letter was that Frazier had touched the student several times inappropriately, texted her during class on numerous occasions, told her he loved her and asked her for a nude photograph.

“When we were in his office he would give me a hug, rub his hand on my upper leg, grab my thigh and butt,” she wrote.

She was also seen by a teacher sitting on Frazier's lap, though that was not divulged in the letter.

More cases to come

The letter, and a Herald-Tribune story on the allegations against Frazier, sparked a three month investigation by the Bradenton Police Department.

The investigation eventually led to seven misdemeanor battery charges and three misdemeanor charges of interfering with a student's attendance against Frazier.

Mulock strongly criticized the police investigation on Wednesday, calling it “flawed from the beginning.”

“I think it was a matter of law enforcement trying to make something out of nothing,” Mulock said. “I think the Bradenton Police Department saw this as their opportunity for some big investigation.

“I think they bit off more than they could chew and I think once they got into it they had to try and put it together and then they turned that mess over to the state attorney.

“I commend the state attorney because they really salvaged what they got.”

“Why have your client plead if the investigation is flawed and there was no evidence?” Radzilowski wrote in an email.

It has been an emotional week for the former student who wrote the January 9, 2012 letter that sparked the police investigation — early Monday morning she gave birth to a son.

“I think what she would say is she feels like a weight has been lifted off her shoulders and she just wants to move on with her life,” Damian Mallard, an attorney for the family, said Wednesday.

Though Frazier's case has essentially been resolved, the fallout from it continues.

Former assistant superintendent and former Manatee High principal Robert Gagnon has been charged with two counts of failure to report suspected child abuse. One count is a felony. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and a June 16 trial date has been set.

A charge of providing false information to law enforcement was recently dropped against Gagnon.

The school district has recommended Gagnon be terminated and he participated last week in an administrative hearing to save his job. A judge's recommendation has yet to be rendered.

Former Manatee High assistant principals Matthew Kane and Gregg Faller have also been charged with two counts each of failure to report child abuse. Both have pleaded not guilty and June 16 trial dates have been set.

Charges of providing false information to law enforcement were also recently dropped against Kane and Faller.

Like Gagnon, the district has recommended their terminations and they have requested administrative hearings to save their jobs. Kane's hearing is taking place this week; Faller's is scheduled for June.

Former district investigator Debra Horne was charged with failure to report suspected child abuse in the Frazier case but entered into a pretrial diversion program.

The charge will be dropped if she completes the stipulations set forth in the program.

<p><em>BRADENTON</em> - Alice Kaddatz stood by the Manatee County courthouse Wednesday morning and spoke of the anguish the past year has brought to her family.</p><p>“I don't know how many people could put their lives out there like we have,” she said. “It's been difficult.”</p><p>Kaddatz spoke moments after former Manatee High assistant football coach Rod Frazier pleaded no contest to four misdemeanor charges of battery and two counts of interfering with a student's attendance.</p><p>The state dropped three misdemeanor battery charges and one charge of interfering with a student's attendance in the case.</p><p>As part of the deal Frazier, 36, received three years probation, six months house arrest and he must complete 90 days of manual labor for Manatee County in the span of a year.</p><p>In addition, Frazier will voluntarily surrender for permanent revocation any teaching or coaching licenses. That means he will not be able to coach or teach in the state of Florida for the rest of his life.</p><p>The victims in the Frazier case were all former female Manatee High students or employees. </p><p>One of the battery charges Frazier pleaded no contest to involved Kaddatz's daughter, a former Manatee High student who graduated from the district last spring.</p><p>Kaddatz said the difficulty the family has experienced because of the case was made worthwhile by Wednesday's plea deal.</p><p>“Yes,” Kaddatz said. “Because of the fact he is not going to do this to another child and that has always been my main purpose behind this. This needed to stop. It's wrong.”</p><p>Frazier appeared in court Wednesday wearing a white dress shirt and tie. He accepted his punishment quietly, responding to the judges questions with short “Yes sir, no sir” answers, and did not comment after the brief proceeding.</p><p>Ed Mulock, Frazier's attorney, stood a few feet from Kaddatz at the courthouse. He said Frazier was running low on funds for his defense, which was one of the reasons he accepted the deal.</p><p>Mulock said he was generally pleased with the deal. A trial date had been set for June 2.</p><p>“I've been doing this for 45 years,” Mulock said. “I've been there with great cases and lost and I've been there with terrible cases and won. The bottom line in litigation is it's a crap shoot, so do you take a chance when you get probation? No. It would be stupid.</p><p>“And remember they dropped four charges, three of them are batteries. I thought that was very important.</p><p>“I'm real happy they will step up and drop charges. That's unusual. The state attorney doesn't drop charges.”</p><p>Assistant State Attorney Heather Doyle issued a statement after Frazier's court appearance.</p><p>“This was a very emotional experience for these victims,” Doyle said. “We sought justice. He was convicted of these crimes, and he is being punished for these crimes.”</p><p>Kaddatz's daughter wrote a letter on January 9, 2012, outlining several allegations concerning Frazier's behavior at Manatee High and the letter was brought to school principal Don Sauer. Along with being an assistant football coach, Frazier was a former parent liaison at the school.</p><p>Among the allegations in the letter was that Frazier had touched the student several times inappropriately, texted her during class on numerous occasions, told her he loved her and asked her for a nude photograph.</p><p>“When we were in his office he would give me a hug, rub his hand on my upper leg, grab my thigh and butt,” she wrote.</p><p>She was also seen by a teacher sitting on Frazier's lap, though that was not divulged in the letter.</p><p><B>More cases to come </b></p><p>The letter, and a Herald-Tribune story on the allegations against Frazier, sparked a three month investigation by the Bradenton Police Department.</p><p>The investigation eventually led to seven misdemeanor battery charges and three misdemeanor charges of interfering with a student's attendance against Frazier.</p><p>Mulock strongly criticized the police investigation on Wednesday, calling it “flawed from the beginning.”</p><p>“I think it was a matter of law enforcement trying to make something out of nothing,” Mulock said. “I think the Bradenton Police Department saw this as their opportunity for some big investigation.</p><p>“I think they bit off more than they could chew and I think once they got into it they had to try and put it together and then they turned that mess over to the state attorney.</p><p>“I commend the state attorney because they really salvaged what they got.”</p><p>Bradenton police chief Michael Radzilowski took exception to Mulock's comments.</p><p>“Why have your client plead if the investigation is flawed and there was no evidence?” Radzilowski wrote in an email.</p><p>It has been an emotional week for the former student who wrote the January 9, 2012 letter that sparked the police investigation — early Monday morning she gave birth to a son.</p><p>“I think what she would say is she feels like a weight has been lifted off her shoulders and she just wants to move on with her life,” Damian Mallard, an attorney for the family, said Wednesday.</p><p>Though Frazier's case has essentially been resolved, the fallout from it continues.</p><p>Former assistant superintendent and former Manatee High principal Robert Gagnon has been charged with two counts of failure to report suspected child abuse. One count is a felony. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and a June 16 trial date has been set.</p><p>A charge of providing false information to law enforcement was recently dropped against Gagnon.</p><p>The school district has recommended Gagnon be terminated and he participated last week in an administrative hearing to save his job. A judge's recommendation has yet to be rendered.</p><p>Former Manatee High assistant principals Matthew Kane and Gregg Faller have also been charged with two counts each of failure to report child abuse. Both have pleaded not guilty and June 16 trial dates have been set.</p><p>Charges of providing false information to law enforcement were also recently dropped against Kane and Faller.</p><p>Like Gagnon, the district has recommended their terminations and they have requested administrative hearings to save their jobs. Kane's hearing is taking place this week; Faller's is scheduled for June.</p><p>Former district investigator Debra Horne was charged with failure to report suspected child abuse in the Frazier case but entered into a pretrial diversion program.</p><p>The charge will be dropped if she completes the stipulations set forth in the program.</p><p>Horne has retired from the district.</p>